- Acute Pancreatitis
- Chronic Pancreatitis
- Autoimmune Pancreatitis
- Cystic Diseases of the Pancreas
The pancreas is an organ with a leaf-shaped appearance surrounded by many organs and vascular structures located in the posterior part of the stomach. This organ consists of communities of cells with different functions intertwined. Some of them produce digestive enzymes, while the other part is responsible for producing hormones that affect blood sugar and metabolism, such as insulin, glucagon.
Acute Pancreatitis
A condition in which the pancreatic gland becomes inflamed for different reasons, unable to perform its functions, is called acute pancreatitis. This is also popularly Decried as pancreatic inflammation. In patients who have had an attack of pancreatic inflammation, abdominal pain that begins in the upper middle part of the abdomen and spreads in the form of a belt is typical. The causes of inflammation of the pancreas can be gallstones, alcohol abuse, medications, viral infections, and autoimmune pancreatitis. The most common reason is that gallstones form a blockage as a result of falling into the common canal, which is responsible for delivering bile and digestive enzymes to the intestine. In addition, there are alcohol, drugs, autoimmune events, diseases caused by some viruses and bacteria. In patients, symptoms such as fever, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, intestinal obstruction, jaundice, shortness of breath, respiratory failure may be observed. In blood tests, height can be seen in tests that indicate inflammation, such as amylase and lipase height, liver enzyme heights, white blood cell height, CRP and Sedimentation. For diagnosis, ultrasound, computed tomography, MRI imaging, ERCP procedures can be performed if there is a duct obstruction due to gallstones. During treatment, the digestive system should be rested and oral nutrition should be discontinued. In addition, intravenous fluid supplementation is performed. If necessary, antibiotics can be started to treat inflammation of the pancreas. Pancreatic inflammation can be life-threatening in some patient groups. If we look at the eating habits in the period after suffering from inflammation of the pancreas, consuming fatty foods will cause an increase in complaints. A little less frequent nutrition prevents these patients from having digestive problems.
Chronic Pancreatitis
Chronic pancreatitis is a condition in which the pancreatic gland cannot perform its function as a result of frequent inflammation or severe inflammation of the pancreas. The causes of chronic pancreatitis include alcohol abuse, a number of hereditary diseases, warehouse diseases. Symptoms of chronic pancreatitis are high blood sugar, accompanied by abdominal pain, diarrhea and insulin insufficiency, especially intense and painful after feeding. Due to the insufficiency of insulin and glucagon hormone secreted from the pancreas, there may be quite difficulties in blood sugar control. In the treatment of chronic pancreatitis, different treatments may also be necessary depending on the intensity of the symptoms. However, pancreatic enzyme supplementation and the use of insulin are important.
Autoimmune Pancreatitis
Autoimmune diseases are a condition in which immune system cells target a certain tissue or organ and attack it as a result of a number of changes that develop in the immune system. In this case, the function of the targeted organ is disrupted, which leads to the appearance of symptoms. The formation of autoimmune pancreatitis also occurs in this way. In autoimmune disease, the patient's symptoms do not differ from other signs of pancreatic gland inflammation. Symptoms of autoimmune pancreatitis include abdominal pain, burning in the stomach area, sometimes constipation and swelling in the abdomen Dec. For the diagnosis of autoimmune pancreatitis, the diagnosis is made by excluding other causes and measuring the level of IG G4 in the blood. Corticosteroids are used in the treatment of autoimmune pancreatitis. It should be examined whether there are other autoimmune diseases such as celiac, hashimato, diabetes along with autoimmune pancreatitis.
Cystic Diseases of the Pancreas
Diseases that occur with fluid-filled cavities that we call cysts formed in the pancreatic gland are called cystic diseases of the pancreas. Pancreatic cysts usually do not give any symptoms and are detected by chance during examinations. Pancreatic cysts can sometimes cause acute pancreatitis-like symptoms by pressing on the ducts. Sometimes, after acute pancreatitis, there are cyst-like fluid-filled cavities in the pancreas. Pancreatic cysts can be confused with this condition. When we detect pancreatic cysts, we need to determine the type of cyst with a number of tests. Because a group of pancreatic cysts is a precursor to cancer, so there is a possibility that it will turn into cancer. Therefore, we need to identify the group and determine the follow-up and treatment process accordingly. Serous cystadenoma, mucinous cystadenoma and intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms and solid pseudopapillary tumors are understood in the group of diseases we call cystic diseases of the pancreas.
